A meeting of minds and ideas at ReggieCon
Written by WZND Newsroom on February 27, 2023
NORMAL, Ill. – Comic books and graphic novels have been a staple in media for decades.
Whether Spider-Man or Batman, comic book characters are pop-culture icons. Entire events are dedicated to these heroes and comics, such as Comic-Con. One man is trying to bring this type of event to Illinois State University.
Psychology Professor and ReggieCon Chair, Dr. Scott Jordan, is the man who has created ReggieCon at ISU that brings the community together through comic books and characters. His goal is to use these graphic novels to show and discuss the depictions of race, gender, and ethnicity.
“We use these as a way to illicit an hour to an hour and a half long conversation in which we are trying to create a space to discuss diversity, inclusion and equity. The idea is to model disagreement in an approach-oriented environment,” said Dr. Jordan.
Dr. Jordan thinks it is important to create discussion at ReggieCon events, that way nobody is right or wrong and people feel welcome to share their opinions on the topics they are discussing. Everyone’s views are welcome on the topic so a discussion can be had.
Dr. Jordan believes that you cannot do good collaboration in a but environment.
“You can’t do good collaboration in a but environment. We stay away from right and wrong. We stay away from the good and bad, and we try to be honest about the depth of how we experienced the story. That is the conversation we are trying to model,” said Dr. Jordan.
This March ReggieCon will cover After the Rain by John Jennings, a story about a woman’s life and survival in a small Nigerian town. Next month at ReggieCon, the graphic novel that will be discussed is Jessica Jones: Return of the Purple Man in honor of Women’s History Month. This event will be on March 8.
